Hemesh Chadalavada, a self-proclaimed ‘nerd’ fascinated by robotics, embarked on a mission to address the challenges faced by Alzheimer’s patients, inspired by his grandmother’s struggle with the disease. Witnessing an incident where his grandmother left the gas on fueled his determination to find a solution.
In 2018, at the age of 12, Hemesh observed his grandmother’s difficulties and questioned how accidents could be avoided in his absence.
Drawing insights from a visit to an Alzheimer’s care center in India and based on their feedback, aiming for a lightweight and unobtrusive solution. That’s when Hemesh fine-tuned the Alpha Monitor, a badge-like monitoring device that sends out alerts if the person wearing it wanders off or falls.
In 2022, Hemesh clinched victory at the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow science fair, outperforming 18,000 entries and securing a $120,000 grant. This accomplishment garnered the admiration of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Despite being a high school student, Hemesh is determined about bringing the Alpha Monitor to market by September. His plans include pursuing further studies in robotics abroad.
Last week, we did a story on the Verdant Robotics awesome weed-killing farming robots. It is an autonomous platform that is the only ag-robot in the U.S. market capable of simultaneously weeding, fertilizing, and treating plants for pests and diseases.
However, another player in the game does one thing possible even better, and a combination of the two could be even bigger.
In the year 2021, Carbon Robotics introduced the third iteration of its Autonomous Weeder, a cutting-edge smart farming robot designed to identify and eradicate weeds using high-powered lasers. Building upon the technology used in that robot, the company has also developed the LaserWeeder, a tractor-pulled contraption that boasts twice the weed-eliminating capabilities.
The Weed Challenge: Weeds are a persistent challenge in agriculture, as they vie with crops for crucial resources like space, sunlight, and soil nutrients. Additionally, they can create opportunities for insect pests to damage crops, making weed control a top priority for farmers.
Traditional methods for dealing with weeds include chemical herbicides, which can effectively kill these pesky plants but also pose risks by contaminating water sources and affecting soil health. Manual removal of weeds is another option, but it’s labor-intensive and increasingly difficult to manage due to labor shortages in the agriculture industry.
The Farming Robots: The Autonomous Weeder resembles a large cube mounted on wheels. This innovative robot tackles the weed problem without harming soil or water and operates autonomously, reducing the reliance on human labor.
As it moves along rows of crops, the robot employs 12 cameras to scan the ground. An onboard AI-powered computer identifies weeds, and the robot’s carbon dioxide lasers swiftly eliminate them.
The Autonomous Weeder is capable of eradicating over 100,000 weeds per hour and can cover 15 to 20 acres of crops in a single day. In comparison, Myers noted that a human laborer can typically weed only about one acre of onions in a day.
The new LaserWeeder, while not autonomous, can be pulled by a row tractor, requiring a driver to operate it. However, it boasts three times the number of lasers compared to the autonomous version. In just one hour, it can cover two acres and eliminate a staggering 200,000 weeds.
Paul Mikesell, CEO and founder of Carbon Robotics, emphasized the effectiveness and benefits of their laser weeding technology, stating, “We’ve demonstrated the effectiveness of our laser weeding technology and the significant advantages it brings to farmers, including healthier crops and soil, reduced herbicide use, and lowered chemical and labor expenses.”
Cost Savings: While the specific cost is not listed on Carbon Robotics’ website, the company claims that growers adopting the LaserWeeder are experiencing an 80% reduction in weeding costs. Furthermore, the device pays for itself within two to three years.
The Incredible Possibility: What about combining the LaserWeeder and Verdant Robotics, SprayBox?
You could theoretically take the millimeter accurate fertilizing, plant treating, and ai mapping of the SprayBox, and add the laser weeder. While it may not be better for all situations, it could be used to eliminate all weedkiller spraying. Which could be a big deal for a lot of farming situations and our health!
Angela Davidson, an English grandmother, recently completed her university degree nearly sixty years after initially enrolling in animal sciences. She had discontinued her studies due to pregnancy after meeting her partner at the same college, where only six women were studying animal sciences.
In December 2023, Angela graduated with a Bachelor’s (honors) in Animal Sciences. During the ceremony, a university representative highlighted the substantial increase in the number of veterinary students, particularly women, compared to the six students in 1960, including Angela.
Angela, surrounded by her children and grandchildren on graduation day, remarked, “It was a most wonderful morning. I’ve waited years for this.” Reflecting on the challenges faced by women in the early 1960s, she appreciated the recognition of the evolving times during her ceremony and added, “The early 1960s was a very different time for women, and that has been acknowledged today—I felt such a warm atmosphere.” Angela also expressed her satisfaction, stating, “I’ve waited many years for this, and my daughter, who I was expecting when I left the course, was here with me today to see me finally pick up my degree.”
Heimdall Power, a Norwegian company, is introducing its innovative technology to improve the efficiency of power lines in the United States. The company’s flagship product, the Neuron, a small spherical ‘magic balls’ sensor resembling a soccer ball, is designed to monitor voltage, temperature, and current angles on high-voltage power lines in real-time.
Traditional power lines lack real-time information about electricity transmission, leading to inefficiencies. With approximately 160,000 miles of power lines in the US, the potential for improvement is significant. Installed quickly by drones, the Neuron provides crucial data to grid managers.
For instance, it can identify areas of over-transmission, allowing adjustments to save costs or reallocate power to areas with higher demand. Heimdall Power claims that improved control over power lines has already saved customers significant amounts in Norwegian Kroner, equivalent to almost $10 million. The Neuron is set to make its debut in the US through agreements with Great River Energy in Minnesota and an undisclosed publicly-traded utility in Michigan.
Japan’s Moon Sniper robotic explorer has landed on the lunar surface, but the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is still determining its condition. The uncrewed Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) mission landed on Friday, January 19, JAXA is currently assessing its status for future updates.
If successful, Japan would be the third country this century and the fifth ever to achieve a safe lunar landing. SLIM, nicknamed Moon Sniper, demonstrated precision technology for a pinpoint landing on a 100-meter landing site using its “smart eyes” image-matching navigation.
The landing site is near the Shioli crater in the Sea of Nectar, south of the Sea of Tranquility where Apollo 11 landed. The mission aims to study rocks for insights into the moon’s origin, examining debris created by meteorites and other impacts.
Despite the hazardous nature of landing near rocky, sloped areas, JAXA is confident in the lander’s technology. The lunar space race has seen attempts and outcomes from various countries, with India achieving a controlled landing, while others faced failures.
The motivation behind lunar exploration includes accessing water in permanently shadowed regions for future human space exploration needs. If successful, the lightweight SLIM lander could serve as an effective design for small-scale lunar and planetary landings, including Mars, according to JAXA.
